The present invention relates to a sign generator, and is concerned more particularly with a microprocessor-based sign generator that can be used to compose and cut sign text with appropriate control of character spacing and positioning for varied appearances.
Until now, the creation of special purpose signs and lettering for advertising, notices, directions or information has been largely an art form. The text of the sign is laid out manually with appropriate spacing and sizing, and then the text characters themselves are painted or drawn by persons skilled in this particular art. In some instances, die-cut letters can be employed, but the overall layout of the sign is left to the sign maker.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,826,167 describes a more developed sign forming apparatus utilizing heated cutting dies. In this patent, the text of a sign is cut in a thermoplastic sign material adhesively secured to a paper release liner. A strip of the material and liner is fed past a cutting station at which a heated die is pressed through the thermoplastic material to the liner in order to cut a character such as letter as number forming part of the sign text. Through a series of sequential cutting operations a full line of text is prepared on the liner with each character and word spaced exactly as described in the finished sign. The spacing of individual letters is accomplished by means of suitable indicia on the dies and such spacing may be varied if desired for aesthetic or other reasons.
With die cutting systems, the cut characters are limited to the specific configuration of the dies, and changes in height, slant or width of the characters require a totally new set of dies. In addition, the dies must be individually snatched from a heating station, brought into cutting engagement with the thermoplastic material, and then removed to a cooling station so that the die can thereafter be manually handled.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,465,627 discloses another type of hot cutting die for cutting an adhesively-backed thermoplastic film releasably secured to a release liner. The die shown in this patent is constructed of a material suitable for heating above the melting temperature of the film and has a coated cutting surface configured to cut the desired character or pattern in the film.
It is highly desirable to have an automated sign-making apparatus permitting the rapid composition of a sign and the actual generation of the sign characters as they appear in the finished product. Furthermore, it is desirable to provide apparatus for cutting sign text in a wide variety of fonts, character sizes, spacing and appearances without a plurality of separate sets of matched dies. These and other features are general objects of the present invention.